Brad Anderson Dies – Creator Of Globally Loved ‘Marmaduke’ Cartoon Strip Was 91

Brad Anderson, the artist behind the much-loved ‘Marmaduke’ cartoon strip, passed away. He was 91.

The creator of the cartoon strip about a larger-than-life, but thoroughly lovable, adorable and mild mannered Great Dane, who goes by the name of Marmaduke, died on Aug. 30 in The Woodlands, Texas, confirmed Universal Uclick, the organization that syndicated his cartoons.

‘#Marmaduke’ creator Brad Anderson has passed away. pic.twitter.com/Fv2i75B8ll

— ComiConverse (@ComiConverse) September 6, 2015

The cartoon strip was one of the most heavily syndicated and appeared in over 500 newspapers in 10 countries, according to the National Cartoonist Society. “The NCS and the world of cartooning lost one of its true luminaries last week with the passing of Brad Anderson, creator of the comic Marmaduke,” read the statement from the organization.

The curious dog, his loving family, and the Marmaduke cartoon strip was the inspiration behind feature film of the same name that was released in 2010. The single-panel cartoon strip has been featured in newspapers across Greece, England Germany, Sweden, and many more. The story line of Marmaduke was quite simple and could be likened to the lovable, innocent, but always-getting-into-trouble Dennis the Menace. Just like Dennis, Marmaduke also had a family that looked past his mischief.

Interestingly, though the dog in the cartoon series is a Great Dane, Brad Anderson had the boxer breed in mind, but he changed it because he wanted to draw a more “imposing breed,” reported the New York Times. Speaking about his creation, Anderson had once said,

“I wanted a larger dog. I wanted a dog that doesn’t know it’s a big dog, because big dogs don’t realize how large they are. They want to sit in your lap.”

Anderson believes people loved Marmaduke primarily because of the dog’s simple demeanor and behavior that was quite akin to a regular, but large dog, and more importantly, because his creator did not attempt to imbibe human-like abilities like speech.

“He’s not a talking dog. He doesn’t have a balloon above his head; he doesn’t walk on his hind legs. He walks and does things a real dog would do.”

Ironically, though, the motion picture that was inspired by Brad Anderson’s creation had the dog displaying all sorts of human actions, including walking on hind legs and talking.

Anderson continued to create Marmaduke and pen hilarious one-line quips for the cartoon strips even in his advanced years, but sought help from his son Paul, reported MSN. He is survived by his wife, three sons, a daughter, and a whole bunch of grandchildren, as well as great-grandkids.

[Image Credit | Star News Daily]